A Glimpse of Heaven
by the red hero
Summary: The night falls fast. After the festivities where the Leam Empire, the Kou Empire and the Kingdom of Sindria have gathered to have a semi-normal festival to wish goodwill upon each other; and the stage is set as Ren Kouen recalls the days when he talked freely with a mysterious woman with rose-colored hair.
1. A Glimpse of Heaven

**A Glimpse of Heaven**

**By the red hero**

_Summary: The night falls fast. After the festivities where the Leam Empire, the Kou Empire and the Kingdom of Sindria have gathered to have a semi-normal festival to wish goodwill upon each other; and the stage is set as Ren Kouen recalls the days when he talked freely with a mysterious woman with rose-colored hair._

_Implied onesided!Kouen x Madokami_

**%^%^%^%^%^%^%**

The festivities in the southern island were too gaudy, like that flashy man of a king. Ren Kouen sat on the chair opposite of Sinbad and Mu, and both seemed drunk (though he had a nagging suspicion that both were just pretending to _**be **_drunk). As he sighed irritably, pondering about the world of Alma Toran; he realized that _her _predictions were slowly coming to pass.

* * *

_He looked at her skeptically "War?"_

_Her golden eyes stared into his red ones, full of mirth. "You don't believe me do you, Kouen-san?" she smiled, taking another flower to braid into the crown she was creating. "But then again; it's fine. It's better if no one knows."_

"_What do you mean, Madoka?" Kouen asked with narrowed eyes. "You cannot just say that there is an impending war and leave me hanging."_

_She shook her head, locks of rose-colored hair falling into her face, some tumbling over her shoulder. Did she even cut her hair? "In due time, Kouen-san. You will know in due time."_

_With an annoyed sound, he gave up, which was quite unusual for him. _

_Kaname Madoka was a woman who could never be persuaded no matter how one tried after all._

* * *

Kouen looked aside and saw the little magi who claimed that Alma Toran was his birthplace. The fanalis girl and Alibaba Saluja were laughing alongside him, without a care in the world. The Magi of Leam; was it Titas? - Oh yes, _Titus, _with his protégé, Marga, was along with them.

If _she _was here, would she have danced along to the festive music too? Would she have disapproved of the countless battled their country waged to unify the world? '_Yes she would.' _Kouen thought irritably._ 'She would either look at me with those damned eyes of hers or just sigh like I'm a child.'_

Kouen always thought that her eyes were extraordinary. Golden, but not like the dull gold that fades with time, like the color that one saw when gazing upon material riches. Her eyes saw everything eternally changing.

It was as if her eyes were gazing into something different entirely. What _did _she see? He knew him and Koumei were intellectual men; yet her logic always surpassed him.

* * *

_As the wind blew over the plains, she gazed up at him in horror, those golden eyes wide and just so __**goddamn **__vulnerable. _

"_Kouen-san! You didn't need to do that to the poor soldier!" Madoka raised her voice; which was a rare occurrence. He didn't seem fazed; seeing as she was used to berating even higher-ranking people. _

_As if she was a God herself. _

"_It needed to be done." Kouen grumbled as he sat beside his…__**friend **__of sorts. "He was in the way."_

"_But just getting in the way is no reason to abandon him in a battlefield!" Madoka retorted, her voice lowering. She exhaled. "I-I'm sorry, Kouen-san. It was out of line for me to speak in your matters." She bowed low and only then did Kouen notice that she always wore the same clothes: shades of roses and white; was she a noble, then?_

_She stood up and started to make her leave. _

"_Hey." Kouen ground out just as Madoka was leaving. "Why do you care so much about other people? Even though their numbers are many and easily replaceable…besides, this is for the sake of their country."_

_A strange look came over her face as she turned, as if remembering a lost comrade. She turned and sat back beside the red-haired man who was infinitely larger and stronger than her, and sighed. "You see, Kouen-san, even though they are plentiful in numbers, a life is still a life. They can only have one. If I was a soldier who had killed in a battle field; even if he was my enemy; I would still mourn him. I took his life, his chance to maybe help his family, raise his children, and the chance to do many, many more things for himself… and it will forever be a sin weighting upon my shoulders." _

_She turned her head. "And no matter who they are; I do not want to see anyone mourning over someone, and with that mourning, fall into despair. Not ever."_

_Kouen looked at her, an impassive look on his face. _

"_**Never again.**_

* * *

As he downed the last part of his liquor, a servant came over to fill his goblet again, and he stared at the bright red wine before taking another sip, drowning the noise of the other people dancing and merrymaking. He let a small, wry smile slip into his face, causing some Kou servants who saw the small, unexpected expression to swoon.

He would always pester her with questions, sometimes demanding, sometimes patient. If she was allowed to answer; she would answer wholeheartedly: if not, no words would escape her except a small, apologetic smile which he soon found to be endearing.

He hated to admit that he liked that smile.

But it was … unexpected when she gave him one of his infamous predictions willingly; he couldn't shake off the foreboding feeling of dark times to come.

* * *

_The sun was setting over the horizon, dyeing the skies streaks of orange with black sky and stars beginning to peek out. Kouen had just come home from a battle and he rested his head on her dainty lap. Madoka was vehemently against it the first time. But the red-head prince merely continued using the pink-haired girl as a pillow. _

"_Kouen-san?" Madoka started softly. _

_Kouen grunted inaudibly, acknowledging the pink-haired woman's call. _

"_It may seem strange for me to tell you this… but remember that war I told you about?"_

_Kouen's eyes snapped open._

_Madoka smiled down at him, and turned her gaze into the darkening skies. "A few years from now; a child with the wisdom of a Great King will arrive in this world." She held her hands together. Kouen's eyes traced how dainty they were. "A Great Gale will blow this world: a war that has never been seen before."_

_Her golden eyes hardened and narrowed into slits. "The bodies of the humans in this world are light; the first gale will shake the world and blow them away." She paused. "-But their hearts will still sow the seeds of hope."_

_As she turned those molten eyes filled with warmth to him, he decided he liked those eyes._

* * *

After that talk; he realized that the rendezvous between them grew less and less. Whether it was because of his duties or because of the dangers that had started stirring within the empire; he rarely saw her anymore.

It was a summer day when she said she was no longer able to sit and talk with him. A sour expression passed his face as he remembered her seemingly weakening state. Sometimes, he'd see her form flicker, showing another form with glorious, white wings.

He always passed it off as his eyes playing tricks on him; but now that Aladdin showed him Alma Toran, he had second thoughts about that.

* * *

"_I think I won't be here tomorrow or the day after, Kouen-san."_

_Her shoulders slumped, and he saw those wings again, for a split of a millisecond. _

"_Why? I still have to ask you questions pertaining to your…__**predictions.**__" Kouen's eyes narrowed as he surveyed her tired face. _

"_My time here is limited, Kouen-san." Madoka answered with a light laugh, which later turned into a hacking cough. In a rare display of concern, Kouen rushed to her side, cursing as he hurriedly unclasped the goatskin flask at his side. _

_The coughing suddenly stopped, and he looked up to see a blank look on her face, eyes staring at the palm of her hand, stained in bright crimson. She then laughed, startling the red-eyed prince. _

"_Scratch that, it seems I won't even be around here tomorrow anymore."_

* * *

She had said that so clearly yet he refused to believe it. The next day he waited till the sun had set, and so did he repeat the next day. He missed those eyes. That compassionate heart of hers. He wished he could have told her something that he had never allowed to pass through his mouth in all his years.

As he silently toasted his next sip to the rose-haired woman named Kaname Madoka, he smiled a small, hidden smile.

He looked up at the stars.

Perhaps she was the only woman he would ever truly love: not for her voluptuous body or beautiful face; but simply for being herself.

And if he had only listened carefully, he would have heard a certain Goddess' small, tinkling laugh of "_And I toast to your health as well, Kouen-san._"

* * *

**Okay, just don't get me started on ranting. I dunno why but it feels like I will NEVER escape the PMMM fandom. And since I saw some fan art depicting Madokami as an adult; I thought I might as well use that for a fic. **

**Aaaaaand Magi: the Labyrinth of Magic / Kingdom of Magic came; and I opened two tabs on different screens, I stopped on a picture of Madokami on Tumblr and the video buffered on Kouen's appearance….then tadaaah. This piece of baloney was born.**

**I seriously need help. Not only mentally but from the armada that Hommando must be launching right now to kill me for writing this. HELP ME OH MAGIS OF THE WORLD. **

**And as for the people who don't read the manga; in the Magi-verse, only nobles can wear the color white in the Kou Empire. As for Madokami's weakening state; I like to think that it was caused by the prolonging of her using a mortal form with her powers intact; In Rebellion Story, (SPOILER) she only reduced her power to a normal Puella Magi level, after all. (END SPOILER)**

…**.I think I may be starting to ship Madokami with most of crossover characters, seeing as she can cross worlds as a headcanon, being an almost omnipotent being and all and as for the "almost " omnipotent part; that would be caused by the events of Rebellion Story (3****rd**** PMMM Movie).**

**If you read this far through this shitty author's note, I salute you for that. Magi: the Labyrinth of Magic / Kingdom of Magic and Puella Magi Madoka Magica characters belong to their respective owners. If I owned PMMM and Magi; I'd be having Madokami look over Aladdin and Alibaba, 24/7 and Homura would be Sharrkan's master. **

**Comments and your thoughts would be appreciated. :D **

**-the red hero **


	2. Over the Hills

**Over The Hills and Far Away**

~By the red hero~

**Summary: **Over the hills and far away, she swears she will return one day. Over the mountains, and the seas, in his arms is where she'll be. Over the hills and far away as sure as the rivers reach the seas, in his arms is where she'll be. And their journey continues; over the hills—and far away. 

_Kouen x Madokami (whoops I ship it now)_

* * *

The orange sky above him was blurred and swirling with colors as he sat in his makeshift chair of bamboo and soft cloth.

Ren Kouen, whose once-vivid red hair had now faded to bone white, chuckled hoarsely. He was old and tired, and he could feel his bones creak if he even lifted a finger. At least his very name still garnered respect from the younger generations in the Kou Empire. As far as he knew, he had aged so far from the dashing, red-haired tyrant that he once was.

The ocean was calming, in a way. As he closed his eyes and the wind whipped his white hair around gently, he heard crunching footfalls approach him. Blearily, Kouen turned his red eyes to the side, ready to tell Koumei or Kougyoku to leave him here for a while.

And his heart nearly stopped.

Her stupidly long, rose-colored hair was the same as it was years ago, the ocean breeze causing it to sway around her face. The same white and pink clothes that she wore every day back then; the light material dragging around her small frame.

"Hello, Kouen-san." Kaname Madoka smiled as her golden eyes looked at him in her usual way; as if she was just gone for a few minutes, not for decades from his life. "You've aged well."

The old emperor let a wry smile cross his face. "And you still look as you did years ago." His eyes flickered over the smiling visage that he so dearly missed. "You're still young and beautiful."

Madoka laughed gently and scratched the back of her head at the blunt compliment. "Thank you for the compliment, Kouen-san." Turning towards the setting sun and the ocean, the pink-haired girl gently took Kouen's gnarled and wrinkled hand in hers. "Shall we take a walk, Kouen-san? I've missed walking around with you."

Kouen snorted. "If I take one more step from this spot, I'd crumble to ashes, Madoka." The old emperor took note of how her eyes softened and her grip on his hand gently tightened; as if she was holding the hand of a tiny child.

"You won't, Kouen-san…now, get up from that chair and walk! It could do wonders for your health!" Madoka gently pulled up the white-haired, elderly man, who rolled his eyes at her antics. It was sadly ruined by the fond smile he donned as he limped along with Kaname Madoka, his cane acting as his support.

As they walked along the shore, comfortable silence lapsed between the two, their uneven footprints marked in the sands.

"…Where have you been all this time?"Kouen asked the pink-haired girl who looked up at him with her perpetual smile, his hand in her smaller one. "You disappeared so suddenly…did you—did you really…"

"...No. I didn't…_die_, per see…" Madoka continued sheepishly. "I-I was just called back into myself." Madoka seemed to strain to keep her face smiling as she exhaled shakily. "I had…something to take care of…something that concerned a huge problem…but it was nothing." She smiled again. "I finished it and came here to see you, Kouen-san."

Kouen's eyes narrowed. He did not notice how the strands of his hair were slowly but surely turning red again, and how his steps began to get more even, the pain in his knees and joints ebbing away slowly. "You're lying. It wasn't _nothing_ at all, Kaname Madoka. "

The rosette-haired girl flinched as Kouen curled his hand around her smaller one. She knew from experience that Ren Kouen calling your full name meant trouble. "Not really, it wasn't a big deal, Kouen-san!"

"Bullshit." Kouen retorted blankly. "That's horse crap."

Madoka blinked at the atrocities that the taller male spouted. A grin spread across her face as her hand flew up to suppress her laughter. "Pfft…horse crap..?"

Kouen rolled his eyes so hard, he thought that he might have broken something. "I'm serious, Madoka. I can't let whatever took you away be classified as 'nothing'. " Kouen noticed that he wasn't feeling any pain from his joints anymore, and his vision had become better than ever.

Madoka looked up at the man who regained his youth again. His white hair had almost returned to its former red—with the eerie resemblance to freshly drawn blood, his eyes becoming more focused on her. His wrinkled, feeble hands had returned back to their old, strong-gripped, selves. He _is _handsome, she noted, even when old and wrinkled. Kaname Madoka, The Law of Cycles, always looked into a person's soul, after all.

Sometimes, the little goddess wondered whether in some world, in some other universe…she could have…they could have…

'_No_,' she concluded. '_No other Madoka Kaname in the worlds except me.' _ The back of her mind whispered. She inwardly sighed in disappointment. Recently, everything concerning her existences was a disappointment. A sad smile glossed itself over her lips, and the words tumbled out before she could stop herself: "I was betrayed by a precious friend back then."

As soon as she said those words, the gravity of everything hit her. She started sniffling, as embarrassing as that might have seemed. Homura Akemi's betrayal, the overthrowing of the Law of Cycles-everything that had transpired from her war and how she'd—

How she'd—

_Torn her best friends wings off and crushed her Soul gem, cast her into Oblivion as the Puellae Magi cheered at her return, but all she heard was Homura's deafening scream—pleading, pleading, pleading- _

A strong arm pushed her smaller frame into a broad chest, her sniffling muffled by white cloth that draped around Ren Kouen's taller frame. His red eyes watched the perpetually-cheerful girl crying soundlessly into his clothes.

It was a disturbing sight.

His arms wrapped around her of their own accord. He did not notice how his hair had fully turned back to red, the same as his ridiculous goatee, his strength returning into his rejuvenated limbs, which were back to how they were when he needed Kaname Madoka's guidance the most. When there was turmoil, Al Thamen, and war. He was used to seeing the rose-haired girl the one to comfort people, not the other way around.

Kouen, for a reason, was not good at being gentle most of the time. As a feared warlord back then, he cut his enemies in half, and shouted commands at an intimidating pitch, fueling his loyal soldiers with determination. He was used to being rough with his concubines as he slept with them, and was used to pushing around his siblings in a supportive manner and encouraging them subtly.

So now, he was at a loss at what to do.

Kaname Madoka was a woman who deserved to be treated with the gentlest affection in the world. She would have made a great mother—and if she had stuck around long enough to see Koumei take the throne after Kouen gave it to him, he would have gladly married her in a heartbeat. But he was also afraid he would break the gentle woman and she would shy away from him. Contrary to his appearance and status, he would _never _force someone to lay by him—he'd hated his father (who did force women to sleep with him on a daily basis) too much for him to ever do that to a woman; especially _not _Kaname Madoka.

She was simply too_** precious**_.

"Tell me what happened." Kouen murmured as he ran his hands through her rose-colored hair.

"I—I had to k-kill my best, _best _friend—I -" Madoka wailed softly. "I-I tried to—There must have been _**another**_ way—b-but I-" Madoka sniffled as she burrowed deeper into Kouen's robes, sending a shiver up his spine. "—I couldn't even—not e-even a p-parting word-" another sniffle. "A-and I even—her _wings_-

Kouen sighed. She was too damn _kind _for her own good. "Madoka, have you ever heard the saying 'a little evil for a greater good'?"

Madoka tearfully looked up at the taller man. "Y-yes—It –I've heard…a friend say that…"

Kouen gently brushed away a few strands from her lonely-looking face. "It's like that."

Madoka's eyes widened. _"Ah, she's going to protest…again."_ Kouen thought to himself amusedly. Before the pink-haired girl could open her mouth, Kouen pushed her along and they began to walk along the shoreline side by side. "Tell me about that friend of yours. What's her name?"

"H-Homura-chan…Akemi Homura-chan." Madoka sniffled as she brushed away her tears with a free hand, the other holding on to Kouen's larger one tightly, as if it was the last lifeline she had. "S-she is—_was _my best, best, friend…" another sniffle. "A-and she was a good, good friend_…_s-she tried to s-save me so _many_ times from—from a creature known as the I-Incubator…"

Kouen turned to Madoka, his hand firmly holding hers. "And…Did she succeed?"

"I-I made a c-choice…she forbade me to m-make; and I became w-what I am now…a conceptualized…existence." Madoka whimpered like a hurt child. "I-I thought t-that was for the b-best, but Homura-chan…she was so lonely. _**I**_ made her so _**lonely**_ when I left-!"

Kouen stared on indifferently to Madoka as they paused, the waves lapping up to the shore. "It wasn't your fault. You were probably lonely too, being a solitary being all the time…"

"I-I was…b-but Homura-chan-!"

Kouen bent down to Madoka's level and cupped her tiny face and stared into her teary eyes. "Listen to me, Kaname Madoka; Homura Akemi wasn't the only person you left behind." Kouen paused when Madoka looked at him inquisitively. "Your father, your mother, your friends, they all must have been as lonely as she was; even me."

Madoka sniffled tearfully. "I'm sorry, Kouen-san…"

Kouen smiled back. "No need to be; you're back here and that's all that matters…that's _**all **_that matters."

Madoka's cheeks pinked as she looked down bashfully and sniffled. Releasing her face, Kouen gently took her hands (the very same ones he was used to admiring) in his and walked on along with her in warm, golden silence.

He wished this moment could last forever; the scarlet sunset and Kaname Madoka beside him. He knew that this moment would not last. Kaname Madoka was probably long gone from this world. He knew that he had only reverted to his younger physique because of some magic that might have happened. This was all a dream; a wonderful, bittersweet dream, a dream he never wanted to end.

But he felt her warmth beside him as she held his hand tightly, and he could hear the coldness of the night start to seep in. Kouen could hear her singing that unusual song, and he could feel wisps of her hair ghosting over his arms and the sand, their footprints side-by-side.

"…Madoka?"

"Yes?"

"_**I still love you; today too."**_

Ren Kouen was found seated before the dark yawning ocean, the waves lapping against the shore, in an eternal bid to try and reach further to the land. Drained of his life and yet calmly seated like the emperor that he was, his empire, family, and friends wept at the loss of a good man.

But the strange yet eerily heartwarming thing was the soft smile and the peaceful look he had on his aged face, as if he had just reunited with a very important person. Even though cold and dead, Ren Kouen would remain a legend in their world. The reason for his strange smile ranged in outrageous to acceptable theories. Defeating a god, maybe, or meeting Death himself with open arms.

But four Magi could only smile; and smirk, in the case of one, to the testimonies stated by the maids and commoners.

After all, they had seen the faint wisps and shadows of a well built, red-haired emperor dressed in armor with the moonlight and cloud puffs figure of a dainty, pink-haired girl dressed in white, gliding hand in hand away from the cage of flesh and bone that he escaped from, out to the moon and the skies, the rukh twittering joyfully at their long-awaited reunion, over the hills and far away, they danced on.

And they would _**never let go**_, no matter what.

_**.**_

_**.**_

_**.**_

_**.**_

"_**Hey, Kouen-san…?"**_

"_**Yes?"**_

"_**Where do you suppose we should go next?"**_

"…_**I don't know."**_

"_**Should we explore the universe?"**_

"…_**yes. That would be a great adventure."**_

"_**Together?"**_

"_**Always together, Madoka… for all eternity."**_

_~End~_

* * *

**A/N: wHOOPS MY HAND SLIPPED**

**Okay, but seriously I got a lot of MadoKou or KouMado feels I need to let the fuck out.**

**They're perfect angst/fluff material, I tell you. **

**Fun Facts: I changed the title like 3 times. Over the Hills and Far Away was inspired by Nightwish's song of the same title. lolll**

**This was originally supposed to be really short but brain decided to make it longer. Thanks brain. **

**And yes, this is can be treated as a standalone or as a sequel to A Glimpse of Heaven. Also for those who know Wadanohara and the Great Blue Sea or Mogeko, I have an Uomihime/Sinbad fanfic floating around my head for some reason…idk how it happened it just did lol. Do you think I should do it? Tell me in the reviews!**

**Or maybe because my brain has weird logic like "Sinbad likes the ocean-Uomi is the ocean princess-Uomi=Ocean**

**Sinbad+ Ocean= RABU**

**Sinbad + (Uomi)=RABU**

**Sinbad + Uomi = AI YO"**

**Okay, that was weird. **

**As for why Enbaby is a grandpa here, I blame recent Magi updates. Don't worry, Kouen, ur still mah bae, mmkhay? Magi is gonna end soon and after that I don't know what to do anymore. But I just want to say a huge thank you to Shinobu Ohtaka for creating the legendary masterpiece known as MAGI: The Labyrinth of Magic. She has been a huge inspiration, along with J.K. Rowling along with other mangaka and authors, to my current writing style and art style. They da real MVP. **

**MAGI characters and Puella Magi Madoka Magica belong to their respective owners guysss. If I wrote that story, it would be so bland that I wouldn't even bother to sketch characters at allll. Thanks for reading!**

**-the red hero**


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